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Walking a Mile in Their Shoes: A Capital Defense Attorney Examines the Lives of Her Clients
 Defense attorney Andrea Lyon has defended death row prisoners who were mentally ill, who were abused or neglected as children, or who were domestic violence victims as adults. She recently authored her autobiography, "The Angel of Death Row: My Life as a Death Penalty Defense Lawyer." In a recent Huffington Post column, she writes that learning the stories of her clients has taught her that condemned prisoners are human beings with the capacity for redemption. "As long as there is life," she writes, "even if it is a life in prison with no chance of parole, there is hope for change."
17th Annual Starvin' for Justice Gathering Held in Front of U.S. Supreme Court
NCADP's summer interns, (from left) Moté Houma, Eva Zelson, and Robert Ruffins participated in the 17th Annual Fast & Vigil at the U.S. Supreme Court |
The "Starvin' for Justice" event, held June 29 to July 2, 2010, commemorates two historic Supreme Court decisions. June 29 is the anniversary of the 1972 Furman v. Georgia decision in which the U.S. Supreme Court found the death penalty was applied in an arbitrary and capricious manner. At that time, more then 600 condemned inmates had their death sentences reduced to terms of life imprisonment, and all states were forced to rewrite their death penalty laws. July 2 is the anniversary of the 1976 Gregg v. Georgia decision, which allowed executions to resume in the United States. For 17 years, many abolitionists have observed these two historic anniversaries through a demonstration of conscience to highlight the issue of judicially sanctioned state-sponsored killing. Read more about it at www.abolition.org.
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Ex-Chicago Police Lieutenant Convicted for Lying About Forced Murder "Confessions"
 Former Chicago police lieutenant Jon Burge faces 45 years in prison for lying about torturing defendants into "confessing" to murders they did not commit, and for obstruction of justice, after being convicted this month on federal charges. His victims were primarily African American males, and the case is historically significant because former Illinois Governor George Ryan released four of Burge's victims from death row in 2003. That action, along with Ryan's commuting all other IL death sentences, resulted in Ryan's moratorium on executions, which is still in force today. Click here for an archival news account of Governor Ryan's death penalty commutations.
Our Affiliate, the Illinois Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty, says the time is now to end the death penalty in Illinois, and features Scott Turow at their Annual Meeting next week.
Former New Hampshire Supreme Court Judge Opposes Death Penalty
The Honorable Joseph P. Nadeau, a former New Hampshire Supreme Court judge who also served several years in the state's Superior and District Courts, testified recently before the state's Commission to Study the Death Penalty. Judge Nadeau focused on the question of whether "the systematic killing of another human being by the state, in my name, is ever justified?" In a Nashua Telegraph op-ed article, he answers that question with an emphatic "No."
Second Circuit Appeals Court Overturns Death Sentences for New York Prisoner
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit overturned death sentences for Ronell Wilson, who was sentenced to die by a federal jury for killing James Nemorin and Rodney Andrews, two undercover New York City police detectives in 2003. The Court found that the federal prosecutors at trial violated Wilson's constitutional rights.
The prosecutors used Wilson's demand for a trial and failure to plead guilty as evidence that he lacked remorse and refused to accept responsibility for the killings. The prosecutors argued to the jury that it should discredit Wilson's statement of remorse because he failed to testify during the trial.
David Kaczynski, Executive Director of NCADP's New York Affiliate New Yorkers for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, writes that the ruling in the Wilson case is one more example of how the death penalty is a flawed, and failed, criminal justice policy.
Nebraska Prepares to Restart Executions; NCADP Nebraska Affiliate Prepares to Block Them
 Now that Nebraska has done away with electric chair executions and has its lethal injection protocols in place, the state is preparing to begin executions again. However, Jill Francke, statewide coordinator for NCADP Affiliate Nebraskans Against the Death Penalty, says her organization will challenge any effort to revive capital punishment there.
Texas, Georgia Death Penalty Cases Raise Issue of Mentally Retarded Prisoners
No one disputes the facts of the case: Five years ago, a drunken Juan Lizcano shot and killed Dallas police officer Brian Jackson. However, new evidence, and evidence presented at trial, raises the question of whether Lizcano is mentally retarded, and thus ineligible for the death penalty.
Meanwhile, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that Georgia's law requiring that in order to avoid execution, mentally retarded death row prisoners must prove their retardation beyond a reasonable doubt violates mentally retarded prisoners' rights under the Eighth Amendment provision against cruel and unusual punishment.
Swimming for Abolition!
 Lynn Greer, a member of the Board of Directors of NCADP Affiliate Virginians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (VADP) will put it on the line by swimming with sharks later this month. She is training to swim in the July 18 Alcatraz Challenge to raise money for VADP. She also plans to use her participation in the event to focus public attention on the issue of wrongful convictions and executions. You can support her efforts in advance of her swim by visiting her fundraising webpage, and making a donation.
Recent Utah Firing Squad Execution Obscures Death Penalty's Decline, Raises Innocence Issue
 Utah death row prisoner Ronnie Lee Gardner's execution by firing squad last month made headlines nationally and internationally. However, according to an article by Death Penalty Information Center Executive Director Richard Dieter, the event deflected public and policymakers' attention from the fact that executions and death sentences are generally on the decline. It also generated public debate over which execution method was more or less "humane" rather than spotlighting the overall inhumanity of capital punishment. In addition, although Gardner was guilty of murder, his execution revived the national discussion about innocent people being put to death by mistake.
British Texas Death Row Prisoner Awaits Execution Date
 Linda Carty, the only British national on a U.S. death row, sits in a Texas prison waiting for her execution date to be scheduled. Although a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling upheld her death sentence, Carty and her supporters insist she is innocent of the crime for which she is to be put to death. The British government vows to do whatever it can to assist in her clemency campaign.
Alabama Office Seekers Call for State Death Penalty Moratorium
The South is the U.S. region with the most executions. But the campaigns of candidates for Alabama's attorney general are questioning the death penalty, including one who calls for a moratorium on the death penalty there. The Birmingham News says the candidate is making the right call.
Upcoming Events
Coloradans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty's "Invest in Abolition" Fundraising Barbecue, July 17, 2010, 4 p.m.- 7p.m., Denver, Colorado. RSVP by C.O.B. July 9, 2010 at (303) 495-2901, or lisa@coadp.org.
Illinois Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty Annual Meeting, featuring Scott Turow, July 13, 2010, 6 p.m., Illinois State Bar Association Offices, 20 S. Clark St., Suite 900, Chicago, Illinois. Please click here for more information.
People of Faith Against the Death Penalty is organizing The Kairos Conference: Discerning Justice & Taking Action on America's Death Penalty, November 16-17, 2010, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia. Visit PFADP's website for more information.
NCADP Annual Conference, January 13-16, 2011, Renaissance Downtown Hotel, Chicago, Illinois, details to be posted soon at www.ncadp.org.
Do you have an upcoming event in your state? Please send your events to margaret@ncadp.org for inclusion in future issues of Abolition Times.
Get involved!
To keep up to date with the latest death-penalty related news between issues of "Abolition Times" postings, visit our www.ncadp.org and our "In The News" blog.
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You can join our efforts to Shout from the Rooftops, about the innocent and executed. And help us serve victims of violence by making a contribution to Rachel's Fund, or set up your own Rachel's Fund page.
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On July 23 in Anchorage, AADP will celebrate with its annual Fish Fry fundraiser, with special guest 
Abolition Times is an information service for Affiliates of the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty. Your input is an important part of its content. Share your success stories and lessons learned with us so we can share them with all Affiliates. 
